US population grows older, pushing median age to 39, new Census Bureau data shows
The US population is aging, with more adults over the age of 65 and fewer children under the age of 5.
CNN
Census Bureau data shows that the US population has aged over the last two decades. There are now more older adults than children and fewer under-fives.
According to the data released on Thursday, the baby boomers and millennials – the two largest age groups of the United States by 2020 – continued to age. At the same time, smaller cohorts were born between 2010 and 2020.
Overall, new data shows that the median US population age rose from 35.2 in 2000 to 37.2 in 2010, and then 38.8 by 2020. Maine had the oldest state median age in 2020 at 45.1 and Utah the youngest with 31.3.
According to Census data, the number of Americans aged 65 and over grew five times faster in the last century than the US total population, between 1920 and 2020. In 2020, this age group accounted for 16.8% of all US residents.
The public health needs for an ageing population are a growing concern.
In an email sent on Thursday, Dr. Georges Benjamin said that the US population was indeed aging and we were not prepared to meet their increasing needs for health care, rehabilitative and habilitative services in communities. This demographic shift is uneven, and we need to plan well to be able to maintain and protect public health in the face of this change.
Census Bureau: Despite the fact that the US population is getting older, it remains relatively young compared to other high-income countries. Japan has the highest percentage of older adults in peer nations, with 28.5%. Italy and Greece are close behind at 22.6%.
Mary Leisenring said, in a YouTube clip distributed by the US Census Bureau, that 'the US aged from a decline in the number children and an increased older population between 2010-2020'.
Leisenring also said that the recent Census data showed the nation's multiracial group was the youngest race group by 2020. This is the population of those who identify as more than one race. In 2010, there were approximately 9 million multiracial people, and their median age was only 19.9. By selecting the button for 2020, the population has increased to nearly 34 million people with a median of age of 29.9.